‘Every one of us stands with you’

April 24, 2013

We, as a country, again mourn, this time in the wake of the bombings at the finish line of the Boston Marathon that left three dead and more than 180 wounded.

And we, as a country, again pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off and move forward to remember the dead, care for the wounded and bring to justice those who think the blood of innocents might somehow bring our country to its knees.

But we do not bow, nor do we flinch, as ably illustrated by Boston's first responders and residents who rallied to aid the wounded who lay bleeding among the carnage.

On Thursday, top officials, dignitaries, family and friends, and citizens alike turned out en masse to remember the victims at an interfaith service in Boston, the Cradle of Liberty.

President Obama was among those who attended and he summed up our country's mood succinctly and well in this latest deplorable and despicable "act of terror":

"We may be momentarily knocked off our feet. But we'll pick ourselves up. We'll keep going. We will finish the race," the president said.

Boston Mayor Thomas Menino summarized his city's response in similar fashion: "Nothing will take us down, because we care for one another. Even with the smell of smoke in the air and blood in the streets and tears in our eyes, we triumphed over that hateful act."

Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick spoke of the days ahead.

"We will grieve our losses and heal. We will rise, and we will endure. We have accountability without vengeance, vigilance without fear," he said. Indeed.